The general notion is that older people tend to be weak and immobile, who need help to walk down the pavement to the next block. This notion might change with the World Masters Games that opened in Sydney on 12th October 2009. Involving about 28,000 athletes, mostly older people (some of whom have even crossed the 90-mark!), the grand event is all set to break the conventional notions of old age!

One of the prime examples of this is Ruth Frith, a 100-year old great-grandmother, who is also the oldest competitor in the event. Even at this age, Ruth managed a 4.07m in shot-put for the 100-104 aged category, and emerged with a gold medal. And to top it all, she also had some riveting advice for the younger generation – “Don’t eat vegetables, because I never eat vegetables. I know people that like diets that will scream at me, (but) don’t eat vegetables. I never have”!

Oleg Kotelko, another star at the event, won the shot-put and 100-meter finals in her category, leaving a world record in shot putting with a 5.6 meter throw in her wake. At just 90, she quipped most exuberantly, “There was no one else my age, but it felt really good and I’m quite pleased. I also beat an 80-year-old,”

But what has also helped mark this event as a stand-out is the fact that most athletes here participate for the sake of the thrill in finding new friends and exploring the host city, rather than fighting it out for prizes. And with thousands more travelling to the Australian city, the game also makes the cut as a great reason for elderly travel.

Besides all these, older people, especially, 80 and 90 year-olds competing in steeple-chases and shot-putting is no mean deal, even if the medals and competition are all secondary to the camaraderie they share with each other!

It’s official now! Dorset has climbed to the top spot in Britain’s ageing population explosion, with an all-time high of 19.2 percent of over-65 people living there. The average age of citizens living in West Somerset is a whopping 52, with about 30% of the citizens aged over 65.

But what is the reason behind this trend? UK government statistics show that high-priced properties in the recession-hit British economy have been one of the main reasons why young people avoid Dorset as a residential option. Another factor that has influenced the average age of the Dorset population is the fact that wages offered in the area are much lower than the average wage offered elsewhere in the country. This has made students and young professionals stay away from the region.

The consequence of the two issues combined together is the actual reason behind Dorset’s aged population – high property prices and low pay makes the area almost inaccessible for the young who do not have the financial capability to live in the region.

Therefore, people retiring and returning from London after selling off their city-properties maintain an artificial lever on the prices, stopping it from going down. However, the concentration of an increasingly ageing population has not affected the region’s economy as the age-charting map has uncovered the startling fact that more and more over-50s and over-65s are participating in work and allied activities.

So, whether old or not, inactivity and sedentary lifestyles are yet to catch up with Dorset!